This invention concerns a device for attaching and detaching a valved gas cylinder in a fixed position in a portable holder.
Respirators of the type in which exhaled air is released to the atmosphere normally comprise a gas cylinder for respiration air, pressure regulator, a mask with respiration valve and a carrying holder.
In one known embodiment the pressure regulator with its cylinder connection is fixed to the carrying holder in which case the cylinder, when connected to the regulator, is fixed in the carrying holder with the cylinder valve pointing downwards. The cylinder is also held in place with a strap on the carrying frame, the strap being tightened around the cylinder at a suitable distance from the cylinder valve.
In another known embodiment the pressure regulator and respiration valve comprise a unit separate from the carrying holder. In this case the cylinder is first fixed in the carrying holder, after which the pressure regulator is connected to the cylinder valve, which does not involve any fixing of the cylinder in the carrying holder. The valve end of the cylinder is instead fixed and held in place by a fixture on the cylinder which is hooked into the carrying holder, or by providing the carrying holder with a clamp through which the valve is introduced, and which then supports the shoulder of the cylinder. The clamp must be dimensioned for cylinders of varying diameter, which means that the possibility of exact positioning of the cylinder valve is unsatisfactory in this case.